Miss Crescent City 2016 and former Miss Southeastern 2015 senior kinesiology major Emily Randon’s ballet students make encouragement cards for those receiving chemotherapy treatments. Randon’s platform is “Winning the Battle Within” and focuses on autoimmune disease awareness and prevention. Randon’s platform will allow her to share her story of her personal battle against ITP and to inspire others who are still fighting this disease.
Courtesy of Greg Randon
Miss Crescent City 2016 and former Miss Southeastern 2015 Emily Randon promotes her platform “Winning the Battle Within” by having her ballet students create encouraging notes for those currently undergoing chemotherapy.
Each contestant participating in various beauty pageants across the state will come up with a platform in order to raise awareness, money or implement a program to help various causes. This past August, senior kinesiology major Randon was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease that attacks the blood platelets called idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura. Randon is using her personal experience in promotion for her platform.
“My platform is called ‘Winning the Battle Within’ and it focuses on autoimmune disease awareness and prevention,” said Randon. “There is no known cause or cure for ITP, but I am able to use my platform to raise funds for medical research in that field. With my platform, I am able to share my story of my battle against ITP and inspire those that are still fighting.”
Randon is currently a ballet teacher, and she is proud of her students’ eagerness to help out and send encouraging notes to the chemotherapy patients.
“A lot of people don’t know that chemotherapy is not just for cancer patients,” said Randon. “As part of my treatment for ITP, I was required to go through four rounds of chemotherapy. My journey was very painful, but one of the things that brought me comfort was receiving gift bags from anonymous donors. Although the gift bags were small, I was impacted in a huge way. I still tear up with joy when I think about how this small act of kindness made me feel. Because of that, I have worked with my ballet students in Hammond to make compassion cards for patients going through chemotherapy.”
The compassion cards that were made by Randon’s ballet students will be delivered to the same clinic where she received her chemotherapy treatments.
“I can’t describe the feeling I had when I collected the compassion cards from my students,” said Randon. “I think back to the time when I received encouraging little gifts as a chemotherapy patient, and I can’t wait to pass on that act of kindness. It meant so much to me.”
Randon encourages those that have free time to consider helping those in need.
“I think it is important for students to get involved with charities and community service projects on campus and in their community,” said Randon. “Working with my platform has not only helped me to spread awareness for ITP and raise funds for medical research, but it has also helped me to touch the lives of many people facing their own internal battles. Giving time to others is so rewarding.”
Miss Crescent City 2016 and former Miss Southeastern 2015 senior kinesiology major Emily Randon’s ballet students make encouragement cards for those receiving chemotherapy treatments. Randon’s platform is “Winning the Battle Within” and focuses on autoimmune disease awareness and prevention. Randon’s platform will allow her to share her story of her personal battle against ITP and to inspire others who are still fighting this disease.
Courtesy of Greg Randon